SCC | Wybourn, Sheffield 2007

Shortlisted Europan 9

This proposal for the Skye Edge area of Sheffield seeks to exploit existing routes through the area and to plug into the existing spatial and transport networks. By combining four housing types with a variety of public spaces many permutations in the urban environment are created - variety that could be achieved in a cost-effective manner.

The site is located at the edge of park land on the threshold between the urban and ‘natural’ environments. To highlight the experience of this edge our proposal would involve the partial ‘rewilding’ of this area with wildflower swards and grassy scrub. At masterplan level this edge would be hardened, with elements of the scrubland ‘transplanted’ into the urban areas while promontories of public space project from the built-up areas into the meadow.

Placing ‘nature’ within the urban environment gives it prominence as something to be considered and valued. Similarly, the promontories into the meadow allow a place for observation to take place. The new housing along the city edge becomes a vehicle for viewing nature and an enjoyable tension is created across the threshold between the two zones, heightening the experience of each.